Traditional "Santa Maria BBQ" Oak Wood-Grilled Tri-Tip

Looking for a truly authentic California BBQ experience? Then you must try our Traditional "Santa Maria BBQ" Oak Wood-Grilled Tri-Tip! This delicious dish is grilled over oak wood, just like they do in Santa Maria, and it's absolutely packed with flavor. Perfect for your next cookout or BBQ, this dish is sure to please everyone!

We take our BBQ seriously in California, and Santa Maria tri-tip has been a famous regional specialty for decades. Barbecue cooked in the Santa Maria style is a variation of Mexican barbecuing that began in the mid-nineteenth century when Spanish-style weddings were held for their vaqueros. The meat was barbecued over earthen pits filled with hot coals from coast live oak. Pinquitos, tiny pink beans that are considered indigenous to the Santa Maria Valley, were often served as a side dish.

These days, the tradition continues, and you can find Santa Maria-style BBQ all over the state. But for the truly authentic experience, you need to try our Traditional "Santa Maria BBQ" Oak Wood-Grilled Tri-Tip! In a typical Santa Maria-style barbecue, seasoned beef tri-tip is grilled over coals of native coast live oak wood, often known as "red oak" wood. The grill is generally constructed of iron and features a hand crank that lifts or lowers the grill over the coals to regulate the heat.

If you're looking for an authentic California BBQ experience, this is it! The use of oak wood makes one of the American-made grills hybrid grills ideal for grilling tri-tip in the Santa Maria style. The oak wood adds a unique flavor to the meat that you can't replicate with any other type of wood. Perfect for an Independence Day feast, a summer cookout, or any time you're craving some delicious BBQ, our Traditional "Santa Maria BBQ" Oak Wood-Grilled Tri-Tip is sure to hit the spot. So fire up the grill and give it a try today! You won't be disappointed.

Serves 4

Traditional "Santa Maria BBQ" Oak Wood-Grilled Tri-Tip

Basting Liquid

• 2 garlic cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar

Spice Rub

• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 1/4 cup granulated garlic
• 1 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground white pepper
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons dried minced onion
• 1 teaspoon ground celery seed

Remaining Ingredients

• 2 (2-pound) tri-tip roasts, trimmed
• Santa Maria–Style Pinquito Beans, for serving

Traditional "Santa Maria BBQ" Oak Wood-Grilled Tri-Tip

Make the Basting Liquid

1. Smash garlic cloves with the flat side of a chef's knife on a cutting board. Sprinkle with salt; smash again, pressing salt into garlic to create a rough paste. Transfer the garlic paste to a small bowl; whisk in oil and vinegar. Cover and refrigerate basting liquid for at least 24 hours or up to 5 days.

Make the Spice Rub

1. Stir all spice rub ingredients in a small bowl, and set aside.

Prepare the Tri-Tip

1. Place tri-tips in a large metal bowl. Baste evenly with 1/4 cup basting liquid, reserving the remaining basting liquid. Sprinkle meat evenly with one-third of the spice rub (Reserve the remaining spice rub for another use. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month.) Refrigerate tri-tips, uncovered, for 1 hour and 30 minutes. Remove from refrigerator; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Light a charcoal chimney starter filled with briquettes or with the gas burner on a hybrid grill. When briquettes are covered with gray ash, they are ready. Open the bottom vent of a charcoal grill completely. Adjust vents as needed to maintain an internal temperature of 400°F to 450°F. Coat top grate with oil; place on grill. (If using a gas grill, preheat to medium-high [400°F to 450°F] on one side.) Alternatively, prepare an oak wood fire on a Santa Maria grill.
3. Place tri-tips on oiled grates over the side of the grill with coals (or lit side of gas grill). Grill, uncovered until lightly charred on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Move tri-tips to the side without coals (or unlit side of gas grill). Grill, uncovered, until a thermometer inserted in the thickest portion of meat registers 130°F, 30 to 35 minutes, flipping and basting meat with reserved basting liquid every 5 minutes.
4. Remove tri-tips from the grill, and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Let rest for 15 minutes. Thinly slice meat against the grain. Serve with tomato salsa and pinquito beans.

Taken from foodandwine.com  https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/traditional-santa-maria-bbq-oak-woodgrilled-tri-tip